A basic estate plan includes at a minimum a pour-over will, revocable trust, durable power of attorney for financial affairs and health care, and memorandum for personal property. Additionally an estate plan is used to designate guardians for minor children.

An estate plan gives you control over your assets at your death and is a mechanism to provide for those that you care for. A trust allows your heirs to avoid a probate process that can be costly and time consuming.

A trust administration is the process where the Trustee of deceased individual's trust gathers assets, pays off creditors, and eventually distributes the trust's assets to the deceased individual's beneficiaries. The Trustee is who hires the law office to assist with the trust administration.​

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The steps involved in a trust administration will vary depending on whether the death was a single person, first spouse in a marriage, or death of a surviving spouse. Further, the steps can vary depending on the assets and trust terms. 

If an individual dies with a will or dies without a will, then a probate will likely be required. Probate is a court process where the judge determines if there is a valid will and where the deceased individual's assets should go.